Pathways Through Grief

So I completely forgot that I DID do something the other day that likely is worth writing about.

I went into Invercargill on Wednesday for a bit of a seminar thing - it was called "Pathways Through Grief", and most of the day was filled with seminars about different kinds of grief and how it affects different people and what we, as "professionals" should do to help these people.

Actually, I forgot to mention that it was, in fact, seminars on grief in regards to children and adolescents - hence where I come in and can actually get something out of it.

I had to drive all the way to Invercargill alone (I had never done it before), and not only that, but I had to do it in the dark (super early in the morning) on strange, wet, rainy roads. It was not a pretty situation. And since the speed limit along the roads is 100 knots, I was a little uncomfortable about it. But I went only about 80 or 85 until the sun came up, then the roads had dried off enough and I could see well ahead of me. It was actually quite a nice drive when I wasn't worried what surprise every corner and curve would bring me.

The day was alright. The first two sessions were outlining what happens when someone "suicides". It was really weird, because Barry Taylor, the speaker, kept saying "when someone suicides" or "her son suicided". And it didn't sound right to me. But apparently that's how they say it in these parts. It was a really good session, but the "optional" sessions that we had to choose to go to afterwards were not as helpful to me. I went to one called "Chronic Sorrow" which is what I thought to be the politically correct term for "depression". So I went, thinking I would learn some things about it and how to help people with depression. In fact, she was talking about people who have disabled children and family members and how chronic sorrow is different from grief because grief has an end to it...whereas there is no closure when you are the caretaker of a disabled child.

It didn't apply to my situation at all. But I got some really good stuff out of it, realizing towards the end that my family has had to deal with some of this stuff - my mom's cousins Monica and her brother Kevin and their families. It gave me more of an appreciation of what they're going through.

The other one was called "Strategies and Ideas of Working with Children and Adolescents". And to be honest it was a bit of a waste of time for me because the lady only really talked about children - not adolescents. She came up with games and fun little things to get kids talking without sitting down in a formal situation. But they certainly were not geared towards anyone over the age of 12.

In the end, I had been up since 5 am, drove for an hour and three quarters, went to an 8 hour seminar and finally got home at 6 after tea with Karl (he was at the seminar too and needed a ride home from me). It was good, though, to drive home because...well...I wasn't driving. Karl knows the car really well and I had a way earlier morning than he had so he offered to drive home. I was thankful because I was honestly beat and didn't know how I would've driven home safely. Ha.

So anyways...the day was alright. It was good to get out of the house for the day, though, and to feel like I was actually doing something productive towards the whole community youth worker position rather than just Jacquie the Youth Pastor.

Fusion is tonight (youth). I've yet to plan it completely. Better get to it.